Cifonelli cashmere overcoat: Style Breakdown

February 21st 2024

  This cashmere coat from Cifonelli, which I’ve had now for nine years , is similar in many ways to the two coats we’ve covered previously in this series – from Ciardi and from Liverano . There are some technical di...

Cifonelli cashmere overcoat: Style Breakdown

Match in comments:
Hey Jack, Yes it's basically a tonal look, grey and grey, which makes it more unusual and slightly more fashiony. We talked about it a bit here. No I wouldnt' do it with a navy jacket, I don't think...

CoatsFebruary 21st 2024

Cifonelli jacket: Finding a new home for good things

January 31st 2024

One topic I thought it would be good to cover during Dry January was giving away clothes that you found - for whatever reason - no longer worked for you. Finding good homes for good things, essentially. A good example of this is the suede jacket th...

Cifonelli jacket: Finding a new home for good things

Match in comments:
It’s useful to note that almost everything we humans do is a form consumption construed in the very broadest sense of the concept (meaning: a use of planetary resources). Even the posting of that original comment was, ...

JacketsJanuary 31st 2024

My bespoke bow tie, from La Bowtique

February 21st 2022

Back in December we covered the various styles of bow tie , from batwing to butterfly. Learning about the traditions and conventions helped me clarify which style I prefer for myself, and today I’ll be covering which one I had made, and why. ...

My bespoke bow tie, from La Bowtique

Match in comments:
Good to know. Many thanks Lindsay...

Black tie - TiesFebruary 21st 2022

The styles of bow tie – and why they matter

December 20th 2021

I rarely wear a bow tie. Certainly never casually, and the number of black tie excuses has dwindled since I left my job in legal journalism. Back then there were several award ceremonies a year - we even threw four ourselves - but those have gone a...

The styles of bow tie – and why they matter

Match in comments:
Thanks for that Lindsay...

Black tie - TiesDecember 20th 2021

If you had five coats: A versatile selection

December 1st 2021

  As with our previous article in this series – on bags – five coats might seem like a lot, but actually chances are many readers already have that in their wardrobe, if they account for smart and casual coats, for warmth...

If you had five coats: A versatile selection

Match in comments:
Thanks Simon! Okay I see. Probably it is I should be wearing that look more frequently and then see how I feel with it. Yes, without a collar (crewneck for instance) it feels especially odd....

CoatsDecember 1st 2021

My favourite outfits

March 12th 2021

In our recent article ' Outfits that I got wrong', a reader commented that he would be interested in the opposite post. Not outfits I got right - hopefully there are lots of those - but ones I got the most right, or I like the most. Perhaps, those t...

My favourite outfits

Match in comments:
The Galway just about, the Ambleside yes with the storm welt etc...

StyleMarch 12th 2021

Outfits I got wrong

February 19th 2021

Everyone gets stuff wrong. We all have outfits we look back on years later, and cringe. Fortunately, I believe this is something where you learn and progress. It is not a cycle of fashions, where every few years you wear something different, and di...

Outfits I got wrong

Match in comments:
yes I would Jack...

Casual clothing - ShoesFebruary 19th 2021

Tengri: Sustainable, luxurious yak fibre

February 28th 2020

Anyone that has been on or around Savile Row in the past year would have likely come across the force of nature that is Nancy Johnston (above), founder of Tengri, and her yak fibre. Nancy is a social worker, traveller and campaigner, who founded Te...

Tengri: Sustainable, luxurious yak fibre

Match in comments:
Hi Simon, hope your coat is holding up and keeping you warm this winter. Phong, Khangai yak fabrics is relatively new to the world, so it hasn't been wear-tested for years but I can say all our fabrics are heavily tested...

ClothFebruary 28th 2020

Grey and lilac: Ralph Lauren style, in Cifonelli

February 26th 2020

I’ve been looking at a lot of old Ralph Lauren imagery in recent months. Because of the 50th anniversary, but also because of the Ivy Style talk we did in New York , where everyone admitted some kind of debt to Ralph, and reading In His Own Fa...

Grey and lilac: Ralph Lauren style, in Cifonelli

Match in comments:
I'm afraid I don't know Dan, sorry...

CoatsFebruary 26th 2020

The velvet jacket and modern evening wear, in Cif...

December 4th 2019

This article concerns two things. First, the pluses and minuses of the Cifonelli 6x1 style, as this is the first jacket I’ve had from them in their well-known cut. And second, the benefits of a velvet jacket without silk facings - and how it...

The velvet jacket and modern evening wear, in Cif...

Match in comments:
Sorry, I don't have any more pics of them. It's a mohair mix cloth though...

Jackets - StyleDecember 4th 2019

Asking the next question: An interview with Kirby...

September 2nd 2019

I recently did this interview with Kirby Allison of The Hanger Project, as part of his Shoe Shine Sunday series. It's a little bit meandering (and my shirt seems determined to reveal more chest than anyone would want) but I think there are some inte...

Asking the next question: An interview with Kirby...

Match in comments:
"...if you are buying an expensive pair of shoes, why not ask the salesman to observe if they fit you well or not?" A good suggestion, but unfortunately there are a lot of people working at shoe stores - even expensive o...

ShoesSeptember 2nd 2019

Cifonelli navy suit: Style breakdown

August 5th 2019

Cifonelli is one of the three best-known tailors in Paris – the others being Camps de Luca and Smalto. (Though Smalto’s influence has rather waned in recent years, as the others’ has waxed.) It is best known for the style of its...

Cifonelli navy suit: Style breakdown

Match in comments:
There are details on this original piece on the suit Henry. But I'm afraid I don't have the original reference, I just know it was a 9oz plain weave. I'd go for something more like 11oz at least today...

SuitsAugust 5th 2019

Paris: A sartorial shopping guide – 2019 up...

July 22nd 2019

There are some interesting things going on in French menswear. Although France has generally been the poor cousin to Britain and Italy here, in the last 30 years it seemed to get worse. Most of the good shops closed (Old England, Arnys) and accordin...

Paris: A sartorial shopping guide – 2019 up...

Match in comments:
Thanks Stanislav, yes need to update these!...

July 22nd 2019

Optimo bespoke felt hat: Review

February 18th 2019

I'm not sure whether it came across, but I was almost surprised by how much I liked the Optimo hats I saw in New York last October. It was the first time I had seen them first hand, and the felt was noticeably different from what I had seen at other...

Optimo bespoke felt hat: Review

Match in comments:
Just let it dry naturally - felt like this is very robust. When you see some police wearing plastic covers over their hats, you can tell they must be pretty poor quality! Let it dry, then brush the nap of the felt back u...

HatsFebruary 18th 2019

Introducing: Everyday Lighter Denim

October 17th 2018

It's that time of year, and new things are all arriving at once. Today it's a new, lighter shade of the Everyday Denim. Everyday Denim shirting went down really well with readers, both as fabric and finished shirts, and several asked for other varia...

Introducing: Everyday Lighter Denim

Match in comments:
After ca. 18 months. The fading is more pronounced than I expected. Especially on my heat points, neck and chest. I still prefer it to a standard denim that fades less....

ShirtsOctober 17th 2018

Video: In conversation with Lorenzo

June 1st 2018

As promised a while back, here is some video coverage of the talk Lorenzo Cifonelli and I gave at Attire House in Hong Kong last month. We cover a pretty broad range of topics, from how annoyed Lorenzo looks when he's doing fittings, to the various ...

Video: In conversation with Lorenzo

Match in comments:
Yes, it's easier to get good fit in RTW shoes than in RTW tailoring...

Video - June 1st 2018

Unexpected texture and colour – Denim and l...

March 19th 2018

I think it’s telling that the thing that makes me happiest about this outfit is the oatmeal-linen shirt, a piece made bespoke by D’Avino. I’ve been doing this for a while - trying to combine pieces of classic menswear in ways that ...

Unexpected texture and colour – Denim and l...

Match in comments:
Thank Mike, but please refrain from talking to other commenters like that. Cheers...

Jackets - ShirtsMarch 19th 2018

The duffle coat

March 9th 2018

It was freezing in London last week. Temperatures below zero consistently; more snow than we’ve had in a decade. Of course, it’s nothing compared to the US east coast - or Scandinavia - but it was rather a shock. I had an odd feeling on ...

The duffle coat

Match in comments:
Yes I did, but it's too thick and coarse for me - it felt like it would be quite uncomfortable...

CoatsMarch 9th 2018

Monochrome and concrete: Styling grey, charcoal a...

March 1st 2018

Although I love rich, natural colours (particularly in Autumn) I've always been fascinated by the subtleties of monochrome dressing. It has such strong style, and yet there is so little too it. It's striking and unusual, and yet quiet. These photo...

Monochrome and concrete: Styling grey, charcoal a...

Match in comments:
No worries Daniel. Dark-brown suede could be fine - rather like black jeans, when they're faded and have enough of that casual vibe as your charcoal linen sounds like it has, they work well. Also, I'd encourage you to co...

StyleMarch 1st 2018

Bespoke commissions – What I should and sho...

September 20th 2017

Thank you everyone that responded to my ‘You are the interviewer’ post a couple of weeks ago. The number of variety of questions was staggering, and I will try to answer as many as I can over the coming weeks. It may take time, but I wou...

Bespoke commissions – What I should and sho...

Match in comments:
I don't know the exact history, but I think it came from English tweed jackets which themselves were derived from those made for riding...

Black tie - CoatsSeptember 20th 2017

Bespoke double-breasted denim jacket – from...

April 7th 2017

The attraction of denim for the modern, sartorial man is easy to understand. In an age when clothing is increasingly casual, making tailoring less formal through the use of casual cloths is attractive. It retains the benefits of tailoring - the el...

Bespoke double-breasted denim jacket – from...

Match in comments:
Thanks Chris. It has aged well, and I do wear it quite often. The only restriction is the weight, which makes it really just an Autumn/Winter piece. It's also the kind of jacket that leads everything else in the outfit, ...

DenimApril 7th 2017

The cap

November 30th 2016

If styled right, a cap is a wonderfully useful accessory. Not as formal as a fedora, yet not as casual as a beanie, it can bridge a greater range of outfits than any other hat. When the temperature is in single figures, and your lack of hair makes a...

The cap

Match in comments:
No worries Jay, no post is ever too old! It depends a bit on what else you wear, but I guess a dark-grey or mid-grey herringbone perhaps? Something with a little pattern but not too much, in a conservative colour, and pr...

HatsNovember 30th 2016

A pale-grey jacket with green corduroy

November 14th 2016

This outfit was used in a piece written recently for Drake's regarding corduroy. The piece mentions some of the associations that corduroy often carries, and ways to avoid them; basically, keeping the colours dark and the fit contemporary. But you...

A pale-grey jacket with green corduroy

Match in comments:
Yes, it probably would, and wouldn't wear them together today - see article here on outfits I'd wear differently...

Bags - CoatsNovember 14th 2016

Japanese retail and the growth of bespoke

September 30th 2016

Our trip to Japan this week was meant to be roughly split into three parts: retail (for a shopping guide), bespoke makers (for a range of posts and freelance articles) and Japanese crafts (around Osaka and Kyoto). But strangely enough, it was the be...

Japanese retail and the growth of bespoke

Match in comments:
Good question Hugh - no idea though I'm afraid! One thing I do know is that tariffs are only one of the things that make such pieces expensive, or harder to import, so there's no guarantee there. And often stockists try ...

September 30th 2016

Five double-breasted styles compared

September 1st 2016

Last month we talked about how small changes in the proportions of a double-breasted jacket can have a radical effect on its style - and therefore on the people or situations it suits. This week I've used five of my own jackets to demonstrate these...

Five double-breasted styles compared

Match in comments:
Yes they are. If you want to see how the measurements are taken, see the Style Breakdown intro article...

SuitsSeptember 1st 2016